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Monday, August 8, 2016

Allergies and Health Issues / Character ER

I’d never suggest giving a character an allergy or health
problem just for the sake of giving your character an allergy or health
problem or to add to the plot. An allergy or health problem is not supposed to
be an easy way to create an in-depth, well-rounded, realistic character. If
done right, researched well, and written with careful thought, it could help
your character to be relatable, especially for people who have that health
issue.

- In 2012, 4.1 million children were reported with
food-related allergies.

- Peanuts is the number one food allergy among children
followed by milk and shellfish.

- Approximately 50 million people in the US are affected by
nasal allergies.

- About 15 million Americans have food allergies.

- Approximately 3 million people in the US are allergic to
peanuts and tree nuts.

Image from Pixabay

If your character has a food allergy, make him/her
conscious of the ingredients in foods and drinks, especially desserts. You can
even have him/her accidentally ingest what he/she is allergic to and have a
reaction.

Signs of an allergic reaction:

- Hives (especially around face and neck)

- Itching

- Nasal congestion

- Rashes

- Watery, red eyes

- Swelling of the tongue

- Wheezing

- Difficulty breathing and swallowing

- Cough

- Redness of the face

- Nausea and vomiting

- Abdominal pain

- Diarrhea

- Chest tightness

- Unconsciousness

TIP: Research how someone would treat a mild and severe
allergic reaction to know what your character would need to do.

10 common health problems a character could have (that could impact a story):

- Asthma

- Diabetes

- Chronic headaches

- Anemia

- Arthritis

- Ulcers

- Hypotension (high blood pressure)

- High cholesterol

- Multiple Sclerosis (rare and would need to be mentioned
more often in your story)

- Approximately 29 million people in the US have diabetes.

- 1 in 12 people suffer from asthma.

- People with chronic headaches can experience attacks once
or twice a month, but 14 million people have daily headaches.

With so many of us suffering from allergies and health issues,
it makes sense to consider these statistics for our characters and even include
them in it. Sure, our characters can all be healthy. In. Every. Single. Book.
But how many people in real life do you know who are 100% healthy?

While readers read to escape life, many like to read about
characters like them, with their same problems, and going through the same
things they are. With millions of people with these issues, you could
potentially target and attract a lot of readers.

QUESTION: Do you have an allergy or health issue like one
I listed above?

50 comments:

Oh, let's see. My asthma flared up this winter and it has been so long since I had a problem with it, I did not even realize I was having an attack. I've had two migraines this month as compared to maybe three in a year. I have osteoarthritis, though I manage that very well (thanks a lot to yoga) and high cholesterol. Don't even get me started on the seasonal allergies. Spring tree blooming is a disaster for me. Guess I am pretty typical though when I think of my friends who have the same issues.

My son found out he had an allergy to Aspirin a few years ago. He had a cold so when he arrived at work he took two Aspirins, he then suffered a sollen tongue and face and was extremely ill. As he reisdes in Spain I knew nothing until he was out of hospital and was asked "Why didn't you inform me I was allergic to Aspirin?" I didn't know as I never gave him the drung as a child.Excellent post Chrys and most informative.Yvonne.

I used to have a neck issue and get migraines, but since it was adjusted by my wonderful chiropractor I haven't had one in many, many years. Shell allergies run in my family, my mother and her mother were allergic and I have some young cousins who've inherited the problem.

I think diabetes is on the rise because of the poor eating habits of people. There are more fast food joints that pop up everywhere along with everything fried. Just look at the mall-every mall has a food court with a McRaunchy's right across the street never mind all the crap one can buy at the grocery store, convenience store, gas stations and coin machines. When was the last time you saw girls skipping rope?? So many families now eat "on the run" and no longer make meals from scratch...this all adds up. In fact, I would look in your cupboard and fridge and look at all the bottles/boxes you bought from salad dressing to tomato sauce and see how many contain sugar. I will tell you that all do which makes it scary. Now, as you know, i mentioned this before, I have Ehlers-Danlos which is hard to diagnose, there is no DNA for this yet and many dr's do not have a great idea about this disease. It is genetic and there is nothing for it. All I can take is tylenol 3 which is what i live on otherwise I could not function. Sad but true. I am hypoglycemic and cheat often which is bad. I am trying to be better now which is hard since I have a sweet tooth. basically I am to stay away from Sugar, starch and caffeine. I produce too much insulin so eat the good bad stuff and i can have my sugar level rise and then crash. I have to eat every couple of hours as well. I do have allergies but not sure to what. It is not severe but I start to cough and sniffle and suddenly realize i need to take some reactin. I also have a low tolerance to milk and eggs. I feel nauseous after.

I think you're right about many people developing diabetes due to poor eating habits. I know so many do get it at a very young age, though. Sometimes, it can't be helped, but certainly there are a lot of people who get it older and it is due to not eating healthy. I am personally a vegetarian so I eat healthy, but I know that there are sugars in a quite a few things I buy. Staying away from sugar entirely is tough. However, I do stay away from caffeine.

I'm allergic to dust, dust mites, cockroaches, oak pollen, birch pollen (so much so the allergists didn't bother patch-testing the other arm as well!), and mold. I also suffer from regular headaches, stomach aches, motion sickness, nausea, and dysmenorrhea. It's a wonder how I have all those health issues and yet avoided chickenpox till age fourteen, one year before the vaccine came out. With my crummy luck, it seems more logical I would've been one of those folks who got the disease several times.

I know I have some allergies, but they were never bothersome enough for me to go see a doctor and pinpoint them. In one of my current WIPs, I have a character who was born with a cleft lip and palate. It's not really important to the plot, but I wanted a character with that because of my nephew and this character was the one that stood up and said "it's me." I did my best to weave it in naturally.

The heroine in my debut novel (Spiral of Hooves) has Type 1 diabetes, but also rode horses competitively. So I had to talk to equestrians who competed despite diabetes - very interesting. (And there are Olympians with diabetes, like Sir Steve Redgrave).

One of the stories in my post-apocalyptic saga, is about a guy with multiple sclerosis. It was difficult to write mainly because it was very personal, as I have MS and I'm in a wheelchair. Perhaps that makes me aware of character's health.

WIP has a girl who has an eating disorder, which masks a potentially terminal health issue.

I don't, and I'm extremely grateful about that. I had a friend in high school who was allergic to corn, and it was staggering how many things he couldn't eat. It was shocking to me how many products add corn to their ingredients--things you'd never think of.

I feel for people who have potentially fatal nut allergies...or who have children who do. It must be terrifying.

I can't seem to go a week without a headache. More often than I'd like it can go on and off for days at a time sometimes. Migraines also suck. Food Allergies can be an awful thing and I feel for those who have to watch every morsel they eat. But Chrys, how come Chronic headaches is on the list twice?

Hi Chrys - essentially I'm extremely fortunate and don't suffer. I bless my parentage ... but it's good to understand how things affect others ... so this is a good read to help us understand. You've got some interesting and informative comments ...

It would seem I'm allergic to aging ;-)I like the use of flaws in characters as I've never met a single soul without one. One of my characters has allergies revealed in teeny tiny sneezes. Another, called Lefty, walks with a limp. Yet another speaks with a whistling S. Dimples, scars, freckles and eye twitches are also good for helping your characters walk off the page.Great post, good points, Chrys!

Very interesting! I too have allergies, from just being outside, or to milk. I read about the person who commented to you about being allergic to aspirin. I have never heard of that before.One that that really bothers me is eating sweets. If the food is really sweet, I get a headache. Don't know why?